Chapter 3 - A New Love

A Rurouni Kenshin Fanfiction

by: Steph

Note: Hitokiri Touji's real name is Himura Touji, the younger sister of Himura Kenshin. She is younger than him by about 5 years, making her 23 at the time of this story. She has fought in the Bakumatsu as best as she could, using her sword and the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu swordstyle. The story undergoes a rapid time change, this change will be alerted. Touji means lady.

Note #2: Takasa Shimo belongs to my friend, Adrian. I have permission from Adrian to use Shimo in my fanfiction.

1865-1870

Touji longed to be free from the hold of the Shinsen Gumi, to be out there side by side with her brother fighting for the new era. Not fighting to prevent it. For almost five years now she has slain the people, who she believed, was destined to fight with. This very thought made her sick to her stomach. Even the very sight of Saitou Hajime made her sick.

One cold night, she was sent out on another mission. Saitou, being one not to trust her alone, sent out three men out to watch her carefully. This was the night that she would force her freedom. She turned down an alley and saw an imperialist, that imperialist was someone who worked with the Battousai before and had heard about her through Kenshin. It was at that precise moment that Touji and the imperialist had formed their plan without speaking a word.

Touji and the imperialist drew their swords, supposedly at one another. She got into the stance for the Ryu Tsui Sen. She jumped into the air and twisted her body around, facing the Shinsen Gumi. Being brought down by the gravity, she swiped her sword at the three men. Not even given the chance to retaliate, all they heard was "Ryu Tsui Sen" before a katana sliced through their heads.

Satisfied with her kill, she wiped their blood of her katana and threw away the cloth like it was nothing at all. She was free of their hold. Now she was off to find her brother.

1878 - 11th Year of the Meiji Era

May, 1878

Touji, now twenty-three years old, had been hired by a man to protect him. Since she was being paid to do so, she accepted. She had to protect the man from a group of assassins that were trying to kill the man she was paid to protect. That night she had killed his persuers and she had nowhere to go for the night, being that she was miles away from Tokyo. Little did she know the trap she got herself into. The man locked himself with her in Touji's room. Assaulted, beated, and raped Touji. A woman of her caliber, in his eyes, would make the perfect victim, especially if caught offguard, like she was. All of it was but a blur to her, it happened oh so fast that the next morning, she couldn't recall what had happened the previous night.

That next morning, Touji couldn't help but to feel different, but she couldn't place just how she felt different. Like something had been striped away from her. The man that had raped her the night before was playing it cool. Acting as if nothing happened. He provided her food, two kimonos, and anything else that she needed. But she couldn't shake off the sick feeling that something had happened. Everything she asked about, he had provided an excuse for. If she were to ask why her kimono was ripped, he would say that she got it torn on a loose nail. If she asked why he looked extremely happy, he would would say that he ran into his fiancee. If she asked about the stains on the floor, he said it was old water from watering the plants in her room. So thinking nothing about it, she departed.

July, 1878

Touji had been admitted to a hospital for receiving some pretty fatal wounds. After the doctors had patched her up, they noticed something strange about Touji's body. That she was gaining weight. So they monitored her for a while, noticing that she was sick, pale, and still gaining weight. Then it struck the doctors, Touji was pregnant. How they were to address this to a manslayer took time. So they figured that they would tell her straight forward.

When the doctors addressed the words, "Himura-dono, you are pregnant," she had no idea how to take it. She hadn't had sex with anyone, as far as she knows of, and she never really had a boyfriend and/or husband. How at all she could be pregnant was far beyond her, especially since she still hadn't recalled her raping. Then the doctors went and told her. They told her that she had been raped two months ago. Expecting for her to become enraged, they took precautions and had quickly left the room. However, she did not live up to their expectations. As a matter of fact, she fell to the floor and started bawling her eyes out. She ran out to the doctors and pleaded that they remove the baby from her. They refused, saying it would be immoral to remove an innocent life from this world. So they convinced her to wait out the entire 7 remaining months. She agreed to it.

September, 1878

Wandering around the outskirts of Tokyo, Touji walked around aimlessly, just like she has been doing for the past two and a half months. Four and a half months pregnant, a bit malnourished-looking, Touji moped around, doing absolutely nothing. Her strength looks as if it has left her, her swords no longer at her side. She was in a complete state of depression. At most times, she wouldn't even reply to her name, being poked, or anything. She seemed completely unresponsive.

As she wandered through the little town, she heard things about the man she had helped to protect four and a half months back. As that night slowly formulated in her head, her rage increased. She heard it all. How he planned it, why he did it, and it was all rigged. All a trap set up for the "little manslayer." Of course, the men knew she was nearby. That's why they said the truth around her. Just to make her mad.

In a nearby inn, Touji paid to stay a few nights, just hoping to get some time to herself. Spending her time in solitude in her room, she would often stare out the window, wishing someone would help her raise her child, her hand appeared to look glued to her stomach. Everytime a man would look at her from her window, she would immediately shut the window shutters, but one particular man caught her intrest. She wasn't sure just what quite caught her attention, she wasn't sure if it was his ice blue hair, or his bright, light blue eyes. But all she knows, is that he caught her attention. She wasn't sure if he saw her, considering that he walked into the inn and heard him acquire for a room. Her eyes remained glued to her door. Hoping that he got a room next to hers, apparently, her wish came true. He got the room right next to hers.

She peered out her door, only to be seen by the man. As soon as she looked at him, its like she melted. Touji would hate to admit it, but she was in love. This man, whom she doesn't even know, had stolen her heart. He approached her but she rushed back into her room, putting on a very loose dress. She didn't want her guest that she was pregnant, fearing it would chase him away. She cracked open her door to see the man standing there, he was almost seemingly, in a trance, unknowning of the fact that Touji was pregnant. Slowly she opened her door, allowing the man to walk into her room.

As a few hours passed by, this man, known as Takasa Shimo, was telling Touji his life and she was doing the same for Shimo. Except, she left out the fact that she was raped and pregnant, she didn't want to lose the one man, besides her brother, that she cared about. She found out that he was a samurai of exceptional skills, apparently, using ice with his attacks. That his parents his parents were killed during the Bakumatsu. And even that her former master, Hiko Seijuro, had tended to his wounds and housed him for a while before he moved on.

About fifteen minutes or so later. Shimo made a move. He approached Touji and planted a kiss on her lips, expressing his love for her. She had to think fast for her love was very close to feeling her stomach. So she pulled away quickly, crying. Shimo instantly knew that something was wrong. So he examined her, noticing the size of her stomach. It struck him. She's pregnant. So he thought that he would try to comfort her. Shimo eventually got Touji to stop crying and she explained her pregnancy, her rape. The news didn't infuriate Shimo like she thought it would. All he did was bring her closer to him, sat her on his lap and placed his hands on her stomach, stroking her stomach and feeling her baby kick. But something strange occured. Shimo had felt two kicks at once. Touji had felt it too. It struck them both.

Touji was going to have twins in four and a half month.